County: Roscommon Site name: Belrea
Sites and Monuments Record No.: - Licence number: A034, E2825
Author: Bruce Sutton, for Valerie J. Keeley Ltd, Brehon House, Kilkenny Road, Castlecomer, Co. Kilkenny.
Site type: Limekiln
Period/Dating: —
ITM: E 596760m, N 738521m
Latitude, Longitude (decimal degrees): 53.396840, -8.048706
Archaeological assessment on the proposed route of the N6 Ballinasloe to Athlone road scheme involved targeted test excavation of selected areas lying within the proposed road-take. Work was commissioned by Galway County Council and the National Roads Design Office and sponsored by the National Roads Authority. Testing here was of a possible limekiln, which is to be destroyed during the course of the construction.
The kiln was damaged during other advance works associated with the construction of the road and it proved impossible to fully assess safely during the Phase 1 programme. A single trench was excavated.
This trench was located on the northern side of the kiln. It exposed part of the collapsed stonework and partially exposed a possible flue. The topsoil was 0.14–0.47m deep. It was light-grey/brown sandy silt and contained a large amount of medium-sized (c. 0.05–0.1m) limestones. The topsoil lay immediately above the collapsed rubble material of the limekiln. This trench also uncovered a possible flue feature at the base of the hill. This appears as surviving stonework with a small recess at the bottom. The overlying lintel stone above the gap has a small iron plate attached to it and this may form part of the flue apparatus.
This site will be further investigated as part of Phase 2 excavations in 2007.
